During every Republican presidential primary election, candidates seeking to win the GOP presidential nomination always, always seek the support and endorsements from the ever-important evangelical vote, and in the 2024 sweepstakes, both former President Trump and Governor Ron DeSantis are trying to out-Jesus one another in the pivotal Iowa Caucuses.
Gov. DeSantis’s campaign came out singing Hallelujah the loudest, courting Iowa evangelicals on Day 1 and eventually garnered the endorsement of Bob Vander Platts, an influential pastor.
DeSantis also rolled out the support of about 150 local faith leaders, but he was quickly countered by President Trump, who has not rolled out 300 Iowa faith-based leaders.
"President Trump is the clear choice for people of faith in America. Unlike other politicians, when President Trump promises he will do something, he keeps his promises,” said Pastor Jamison Plank from Henry County, Iowa. “President Trump has an unmatched record of defending family values, promoting religious freedom, and championing moral clarity and biblical authority."
By garnering a significant amount of support from the evangelical community in Iowa, President Trump continues to steamroll Gov. DeSantis and the rest of the field of candidates, as a new Iowa-centric Fox Business public opinion poll shows the former president leading both DeSantis and Ambassador Nikki Haley by 34 and 36 percentage points, respectively.
In New Hampshire, the first primary election state, Haley has surged past DeSantis, who is in single digits but is still 14 points down from Trump.
Nationally, Trump’s surge continues to spike. The four latest national polls by Quinnipiac, Yahoo News, Economist/YouGov, and Morning Consult, show Trump leading Haley and DeSantis by 41 to 56 percentage points.
President Trump’s Iowa Faith Leader Coalition includes:
Paul Figie, Pastor, Jackson County
Richard Kessler, Pastor, Wapello County
Josue Rodriguez, Pastor Scott County
Korene Sturtz, Pastor, Clinton County
Rick Bick, Pastor, Wapello County
Tony Hacker, Pastor, Scott County
Dave Tyree, Pastor, Lucas County
Rose Kessler, Pastor, Keokuk County
Marti Puls, Minister, Scott County
Darin Sturtz, Pastor, Clinton County
David Lage, Ministry Leader, Warren County
Joshua Graber, Pastor, Benton County
Brad Sherman, Pastor, Iowa County
Jimmy Tyree, Pastor, Marion County
John Johnson, Ministry Leader, Polk County
Greg McCall, Ministry Leader, Polk County
Jerry Reynolds, Pastor, Clinton County
Joel Koebnat, Pastor, Scott County
Patrick Wiedemeier, Pastor, Hamilton County
Travis Decker, Pastor, Wapello County
Brad Schroeder, Pastor, Story County
Robert Klaus, Ministry Leader, Linn County
Dean Scott, Pastor, Dallas County
Dan McCoy, Pastor, Polk County
Mike Griffiths, Pastor, Scott County
Cyril Mckay, Pastor, Mahaska County
Janice Barger, Pastor, Muscatine County
Mike Simiele, Pastor, Howard County
Ernie Rudolph, Elder, Dallas County
Dick Green, Ministry Leader, Linn County
Michael Elmore, Pastor, Jones County
Roger Adkins, Pastor, Scott County
Tammy Adkins, Pastor, Scott County
Stephen Cohenour, Ministry Leader, Fayette County
Roland Waterman, Pastor, Fayette County
Linda Nichols, Elder, Clinton County
Tim Nichols, Elder, Clinton County
Lorie Hartman, Elder, Clinton County
Don Culp, Pastor, Lee County
Patricia Lage, Ministry Leader, Warren County
David Sixtos-Villa, Pastor, Polk County
Kathryn Bohn, Ministry Leader, Scott County
Steven Sears, Elder, Clinton County
Kathy Cline, Worship Leader Story County
Jennifer Bramble, Youth Leader, Polk County
Kelly Wyllie, Ministry Leader, Polk County
John Gilworth, Elder, Wapello County
Mark Densmore, Elder, Polk County
Scott Hill, Pastor, Guthrie County
Madison Sturtz, Board Member, Clinton County
Luana Stoltenberg, Ministry Leader, Scott County
Katherine Watsey, Ministry Leader, Jefferson County
Glen Meyers, Pastor, Audubon County
Joshua Davis, Pastor, Scott County
Paul Dykstra, Ministry Leader Ringgold County
Darren Young, Pastor, Marshall County
David Brown, Pastor, Warren County
Adam Whitty, Pastor, Floyd County
Mary Merritt, Missionary, Guthrie County
Dennis Merritt, Missionary, Guthrie County
Ken Bose, Pastor, Greene County
Susan Bose, Ministry Leader, Greene County
Sandra Hanlon, Ministry Leader, Woodbury County
Mike Hanlon, Ministry Leader, Woodbury County
Dianne Schafer, Fellowship Leader, Adair County
Diane Collette, Small Group Leader, Polk County
Doug Campbell, Elder, Cerro Gordo County
Don Buhrow, Pastor, Polk County
Garrett Lamb, Pastor, Polk County
